1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an easy-to-use metered dispensing cap with manifold cover for tubes and other types of containers. In particular, this invention is directed to a cap system which permits metered amounts of material to be repeatedly dispensed as desired. By squeezing the container, a meter chamber is filled as the container is pushed upward; by pressing downward on a manifold cover, the material is dispensed through the meter chamber and out through the manifold cover.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
Numerous patents describe various types of dispensing caps and the industry is inundated with various designs which are sometimes complicated in operation and/or complex to manufacture. The art goes back decades, and the following patents describe different types of dispensing caps and systems that are exemplary:
Early United States patents were directed to metering systems involving designs which typically utilize the full length of a cylindrical chamber to create a volume for the dispensing of a liquid or a semi-liquid material. U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,926,367 and 2,205,082 illustrate these types of early dispensing containers. Dispensing systems involving chambers or traps at the tops of the containers were subsequently developed and these were exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,591,455 and 3,089,623.
More recent United States patents describe measuring and dispensing caps which involve squeeze bottles and/or pump mechanisms for dispensing of liquid and semi-liquid materials. Thus, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,077,547, 4,364,492, 4,376,495 and 4,518,105 describe various types of dispensing systems using trap chambers with squeezable bottles and/or pump mechanisms.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,603 describes a metered chamber mechanism with a cap that is removable. The meter chamber fills up when the cap is screwed onto a meter element. When the cap is removed, the user pushes downward on a gripping protrusion located on the meter element which forces the material out of an opening in the meter element.
Notwithstanding formidable prior art in the metered dispensing field, none of the prior art systems describe a simple metered mechanism, such as is described in the present invention, whereby squeezing a container and pressing down on a manifold cover, without removing any part of the present invention, will result in a simple metered, uniform dispensing of a material.